8 Participatory Propaganda: The Engagement of Audiences in the Spread of Persuasive Communications

Rapidly evolving information communications technologies (ICTs) and increased connectivity to online sources have drastically altered the ways individuals engage in the public information domain and, in turn, become influenced by it. As citizens become increasingly plugged-in, a savvy propagandist can acquire enhanced means of swaying opinions around the world by combining tech-enabled formats of persuasive content, automated dissemination and audience engagement in content propagation. In addition, by obfuscating the origins of propagandistic content through audience participation via the internet and social networks, the propagandist can also increase its receptivity and influence effects. For example, people tend to find recommendations from their personal social network more credible than others (Nielson, 2015). Such subtle mass persuasion, through and by means of personal networks, is problematic in liberal democracies founded on the premise that freedom of choice by citizens on political matters is expected to inform public decision-making and power structures